THE Federal Government has said it is the responsibility of state governors to integrate and empower Nigerians who are being evacuated from South Africa.
Chairman, the Nigerian Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa made the clarification on Monday while giving an update on the ongoing process of evacuation of Nigerians from South Africa.
Apart from the 187 already evacuated, she disclosed to newsmen that the second batch of Nigerians who volunteered to return home would arrive the country today (Tuesday).
Findings revealed that in the profiling of the 187 already in the country according to states, Ogun has the highest number with 30 followed by Imo with 28.
The states of returnees are – Abia 7, Anambra 13, Benue 1, Delta 15, Ebonyi 2, Edo 13, Ekiti 6 and Enugu 7.
Others are Imo 28, Kogi 1, Kwara 3, Lagos 7, Ogun 30, Osun 6, Ondo 6 and Oyo 23.
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The NIDCOM CEO said her Commission has since opened communication with the affected states and noted that she expected representatives of states to be on the ground to receive the returnees. She further revealed that the widow with four children was from Ondo State and expressed satisfaction that the State government was trying to ensure that those kids were enrolled in school.
She described the returnees as hard-working Nigerians with legitimate businesses in South Africa whose “crime” was simply that they were not South African nationals.
She said: “We have profiled them according to their states and we expect the governors to take responsibility for their citizens that have returned.
“I am going to stress one thing: those who returned are not criminals, in fact, they are very hardworking Nigerians and have lost everything they have ever worked for in South Africa.
“So their only crime is being black and being Nigerian. We had father’s separated from their children, we have a widow with four children who just had to come back home. She already has offers for scholarships for her children.”
Honourable Erewa restated the immediate offers of SIM card and air time that will last the returnees for about two months and some money for transportation. She further disclosed that amongst the first batch of 187, were already being profiled to get soft loans from the Bank of Industry (BOI).
“As I speak with you now the bank of the industry has their contacts and will be calling them to come for the soft loans.
“Those are the immediate plans for them. But as they settled in we are going to profile them and do a need assessment because somebody might want to trade and you are saying go and do hairdressing. There is also a number for just the returnees to reach the bank of industry.”
Dabiri-Erewa added that a lot of people have also offered counselling and entrepreneurship training which the commission was compiling and the returnees will also be contacted and link up with these offers.
She commended President Muhammadu Buhari for giving the instructions that Nigerians should be evacuated from South Africa, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama for showing leadership and the chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema for immediately offering to evacuate the volunteer returnees.
She equally thanked corporate giants like Airtel and MTN for the phones and airtime, for the returnees.
She pleaded with other Nigerians and corporate bodies to follow suit.
On the second batch expected in the country today (Tuesday), she said the list containing details of the returnees will be forwarded to the various states to ensure proper reintegration.
“This is the time to show ourselves love and unity, it doesn’t matter what part of Nigeria you come from, we are one united Nigeria and the love and unity, the sense of togetherness was very prominent in this case, where we were being externally attacked.”
“Any Nigerian anywhere in the world be hardworking, be law-abiding and whether you are abroad or home is rest assured that government protection and welfare is guaranteed anywhere in the world.”
On the issue of compensation, she said it was a policy issue that will be decided by the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
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